Saved Data
by Sakura Blackwolf
Summary: A What-If about Kite's past, and when that past comes back to haunt him on the battlefield (ElkxKite)(OrcaxKite)


Disclaimer: .hack series belongs to Bandai and CyberConnect2.  
  
To be honest, I don't know when this scene is set. I just know it is before .hack//OUTBREAK because obviously it isn't out at this time -_-;;. So it could be anywhere in //INFECTION or //MUTATION, though I think it makes more sense if it's near //INFECTION's end and //MUTATION's beginning. Caps lock. Whoo.  
  
Here, I made up a new monster. It was necessary so I could perform psycological trauma on Kite(I like him though. I really do. Except that I laugh whenever his english dub dramatizes the title, "The World."*snerk*). So, I doubt you'll ever find a monster like this one. And as for real life names: The only one to be mentioned is Orca's, since I don't like going around creating new names. And I haven't been the keyword listed here- so there are made-up enemies here.  
  
Shounen ai - ElkxKite(you read right), slight OrcaxKite  
  
Saved Data  
  
by Sakura Blackwolf(Doc)  
  
00001010100010101010010  
  
"You know, I really would enjoy seeing you play The World."  
  
"Yasuhiko, you know my parents wouldn't pay the monthly fee."  
  
"I know, I know. But we can try, right? It'll be good for you."  
  
00001010100010101010010  
  
Kite sighed as he warped to Carmelia Gadelica, by far the most stunning server he had ever seen. Of course, he knew that Lios was keeping the other servers locked up, and it was only a matter of time until he was wooed once more. The aqua-haired boy listened to his virtual shoes clicking against the stone path as he wandered the network. There was nothing big he had to accomplish now, at least, for the time being. Kite didn't exactly appreciate being ordered around, though he was never as blatant about it as BlackRose. He smiled at that thought.  
  
Yes, he was contemplating just going off to trade with everybody in sight at this point. His data was saved, his supplies were replenished, he was out of set keywords. His idle state was easily averted the minute he caught sight of a familar Wavemaster run by to the Chaos Gate. The virtual makeup of blue hair and contrasting but dark, red eyes passed by him as if he hadn't noticed at all. Kite would be able to recognize Elk immediately if he were ever in a room full of identical Wavemasters. He never figured how that was possible, but assumed it was because the young boy had become a part of his heart like the rest of his friends.  
  
Before he knew it, the Chaos Gate was getting closer as he ran, yelling for Elk to wait up. Curious red eyes turned to face him, mild shock within those depths. Depths created by mere numbers, Kite thought solemnly.  
  
"Hey Elk, I haven't seen you around lately. You mind if we talk a little? I'm in need of company." The aqua-haired boy found himself chuckling slightly as Elk's feet turned inwardly out of embarassment. The Wavemaster held his staff close to him with both hands as he murmured softly, head ducked a little to hide his eyes.  
  
"S-sorry. But...I need to log out..now. It's..um, time...for dinner." The Twin Blade scratched his head nervously as Elk whispered the last part out meekly.  
  
"No, it's okay. Some other time then." Kite hesitated, hoping he wasn't making a fool out of himself. "How about we meet somewhere tomorrow?"  
  
"Why?" The Twin Blade found himself shocked by that question. How could he just say, I wanted to see you again? He was right there after all. But there was still a reason, partly true, partly made up to cover his real explanation.  
  
"I want to find out more about you. I'm curious. So how about it? You don't have to." Kite found himself holding his breath on the other side of the computer screen as Elk looked down in thought. His fingers fidgeted nervously with his staff, shifting from one hand to the other occasionally. For reasons the Twin Blade could not make sense of, he wished badly that the Wavemaster would accept his invitation. It was different when he was around him. He felt happiness. yes, he was happy with all the other friends he had made. But this one, this one was different.  
  
"Um...okay." Kite barely caught those words.  
  
"What'd you say?"  
  
Elk seemed hesitant about repeating himself. "I said..okay." The Wavemaster helped with a tiny smile, tainted with nervousness. If digital matter could brighten a character's eyes, Elk just witnessed it in Kite's blue irises.  
  
"That's great! Meet me here at the Chaos Gate first thing tomorrow."  
  
It wasn't until they both gated out that Kite realized they never specified a time.  
  
00001010100010101010010  
  
"See, this is my character here- Orca of the Azure Sea."  
  
"So, you can be anyone you want to be in The World?"  
  
"Yep. Me and my partner, Balmung- we're pretty darn famous. The Descendants of Fianna." Curious blue eyes peered up at Yasuhiko's enthused expression.  
  
"Do you think that playing this game would help with-"  
  
"I know it will." He smiled, eyes twinkling in his best friend's overhead lantern.  
  
"That's great! Oh, and Yasuhiko?"  
  
"Yeah?"  
  
"Your character is ugly." He laughed, scunching his face in fake disgust as Yasuhiko mocked vivid anger.  
  
"Oh, you! Orca of the Azure Sea will make you sorry!"  
  
"Doubt it!" he giggled when his friend completely ruffled his hair into a tornado mess. "Well, seriously Yasuhiko- why is it Balmung looks so special but you don't?" The boy watched as his older friend's expression softened.   
  
"In The World, no one should be too special. I believe that even high authority players, such as myself, are still normal players in the game. That's why I wished to keep an easily reused model. The offer to get a special one-of-a-kind character design was given to Balmung after I told the adminstrators I didn't want it."  
  
"Oh, I see." The younger boy sighed as Yasuhiko ran his fingers through his hair and pressed a light kiss to his lips. Hopeful eyes stared up at the boy who held high status inside a computer game, asking a question that went unsaid. Yasuhiko seemed to understand.  
  
"Don't worry. I'm sure The World will help you forget about 'that problem'."  
  
00001010100010101010010  
  
It was still early in the day, at least for Kite. Elk was no where in sight. He probably should've asked where the boy lived to know when was day and night for him. For all he knew, he was up wide awake in the evening while Elk was just waking up. Carmelia Gadelica was slightly busy, but not as much as he normally saw. Most people came online later in the day. Kite himself was one of those people, but he just wanted to make sure he didn't keep the Wavemaster waiting long. Though, now it seemed as though the roles were switched. Sighing to himself, the Twin Blade spent about twenty minutes staring at the glowing blue gate, before finally reapproaching. If Elk was going to be on later, he may as well train a little. Not much- just a few battles here and there.  
  
He picked his keywords carefully. He'd hate to be held up too long by some impossibly strong enemy.  
  
Bitter Promised Abyss  
  
He found himself greeted by rain and thunder the minute he warped in from Root Town. The blue sparkles were still hovering around his feet the second he set off in search of foes. The wet sand shifted under his feet, streaks of white that were supposed to be water fell across his face. Light flashed in the skies, followed by a booming clap of sound. Pulling his Homura twin blades out of their sheathes, he wandered the field alone.  
  
Slice after slice after slice. It was like some mesmorizing dream, a hypnotic dance that he unconsciously knew the steps to. Healing Potion contents healed him, and Mage souls replenished his SP supply. And the fake thunder screamed, and the rain fell from the heavens like fallen angels. Losing sense of reality, by just staring into a glowing machine's screen. The music booming through two speakers at his side. The controller gripped tightly in his hands. Unfocused blue eyes stared ahead, white streaks glittering his vision.  
  
Kite sighed, the yellow magic portals growing less and less. And whenever he'd think they were all gone, there was one somewhere in the corner of a gathering of rocks. Spotting the golden sparkles in the far distance, he refreshed his health before walking toward the final magic portal. As for time, he could not keep track of it anymore. After all, what was one more battle?  
  
The enemy that emerged from the depths of virtual reality was one he had never seen before. A man with no face, but a white porcelain mask instead. He wore darkness around him in the form of a long cloak. By the way he walked, he seemed to hold no stable form. Mirro-schudig it was called. Steadying his blades, Kite charged forth.  
  
A black-cladded arm waved wildly once in the air, sending Kite back a few feet by some psychic force. Aqua eyes narrowed, quickly getting to his feet. But then the Mirro-schudig bowed in the way a noblesman would, and lifted a white hand to his mask. The rain poured on and on, the thunder only highlighting the features the monster's face had morphed into. Short, brown hair pulled back, a wide white mark down his face. Shaded by both a pale peach and olive green. Eyes, void of all emotion.  
  
Kite found himself stumbling back.  
  
Orca.  
  
Yasuhiko.  
  
The Orca-imposter tightened his grip upon the blade that morphed into his hand.  
  
"Disgusting boy. How could you let me die like that? I thought we were best friends! Friends don't let the other get killed in cold blood!" Even the voice was the same. The Twin Blade could not find it in him to move or speak. The Orca-imposter walked forward, gripping Kite's aqua hair in one hand and then throwing him roughly to the wet sand.  
  
"You let me die."  
  
"N..No! I was terrified! Please..you must understand!" Kite grit his teeth as the imposter looked over his legs. He then smiled, a sardonic smirk that wasn't like Orca- no,Yasuhiko at all.  
  
"I will kill you! I will make you burn in hell for what you let happen. It's those legs of yours, aren't they? They were always incapable of moving ever since that soccer accident. The accident that paralysed you from the waist down." Somewhere behind that computer screen, a sweat-soaked controller left a trembling 8th grader's hands.  
  
"Let me help you relive receiving that sort of handicap again. I lied. You can never outlive your own suffering in this game." Aqua eyes pulled wide open as his legs were repeatedly hacked at, pants tearing into shreds. A strong, unforgiving hand pressed his face to the wet ground as the damage spread into his character data. He could see lips press into his, but he felt nothing. There was nothing. Meaningless red numbers, counting off the HP from his health bar. And he just didn't care anymore. Meaningless. A reality he can never escape, even in a game.  
  
"I'll kill you. You can go to hell by yourself." And there was darkness and rain.  
  
00001010100010101010010  
  
"I know about your relationship with Yasuhiko, son."  
  
".....Father, I can explain."  
  
"Explain? Explain?! Son, do you want to go to hell?!"  
  
"........"  
  
"Ever since you had to ride in that wheelchair, you've been acting different. I know what it is. It's the soccer isn't it? You got it from something you loved too much. You nearly got killed! Loving Yasuhiko will get you killed too! And there won't be any chance of coming back from it."  
  
"..No! You're wrong! It shouldn't matter!"  
  
"Life isn't a game! If you're killed by some anti-gay person, there's no reset button for you! You won't be able to escape hell either! Accept it! You're a disgrace by loving him. And as your father, I demand that you stop it now."  
  
"..........Yes, father."  
  
00001010100010101010010  
  
'Don't worry. If you go to hell, I'll go with you. I will always be with you.' And because of that, Kite never learned to stop loving Orca. Biting his lip, the Twin Blade got to his knees in the middle of the rainy field. A small portion of HP left. So the Mirro-schudig never really did kill him.  
  
"I'm sorry Yasuhiko. I never wanted you go into a coma. You must hate me." Sighing heavily, he tried to stand up to go back to Carmelia Gadelica. But, he couldn't get himself off the ground.  
  
When he finally did warp back to Root Town, he got himself more than a few stares. His pants tattered, sleeves torn, hair a mess, nearly making his ripped cap fall off his head. He immediately dropped his blades, taking a few weak steps before finally noticing a certain Wavemaster. His eyes were wide in disbelief and horror. Kite found himself smiling, a bitter smile.  
  
"Hey. I guess I'm late, huh Elk?" The Wavemaster started at those words, but stopped. Hesitantly, he stepped closer, getting a better look at how horrible was his friend's state. The one who usually led him into battles, standing before him like a broken man. It was just unbelievable, unbearable. Just when he was beginning to admire the older boy's strengths and leadership skills. Finally, he spoke.  
  
"Kite..what happened to you?" The Twin Blade seemed to go silent and solemn at those words. Then suddenly, Kite reached out and pulled Elk into an embrace, tight and desperate like a pleading child. His legs gave out from under him, hanging in that paralyzed state that they were in behind his screen. Elk dropped his staff the minute weight was pulling him forward. They both dropped to their knees. Elk could feel the blush on his cheeks from behind his computer as he awkwardly hugged Kite back.  
  
"Kite..what's wrong?" The voice that rang from his speakers went unheard as tears continued painting his keyboard. He pulled Elk closer to him still, but he just kept crying because there was no warmth. No warmth from something created out of numbers. Just data viewed on a glowing screen that was as equally frozen. So cold.  
  
So cold.  
  
00001010100010101010010  
  
Game Over  
  
I admit, I was inspired by .hack//SIGN's Recollection episode. But that just added onto the plot I already had swirling in my mind, which was that Kite was a soccer player, but is handicapped. A broken leg is recoverable, but if you're paralyzed..it just makes more sense and adds to the torment*blink*. And I wanted Kite-torture! Sure, I adore Elk-torture too, but Kite needs it also! And, I think I made Kite OOC. Oops. 


End file.
